I don't have time to write a big thing about Evan Dorkin's comments on Big Apple Con, but I just want to say: it's getting tired already. Yeah, I think the comic book industry should more aggressively market to teens and women. Yeah, I've been on the receiving end of harassment from one or two individuals from this demographic. But this level of bashing sounds elitist.

Have a heart. I know I'm going to be laughed to oblivion for saying that, that it sounds ridiculous. But have a fucking heart. Some of these older collectors are some of the nicest people I've ever met. I grew up around these people. I'm not ashamed of it. Some have used comics as one of their only bright spots in a life that in every other respect might have been awful. If it makes them happy, let them do it. If they aren't bothering you (other than by the fact of their very existence, offending your delicate sensibilities), stop fucking ragging on them. I can't fucking stand this anymore.

Big Apple Con/The National donated Friends of Lulu a booth this year. We raised a good amount of money for our organization. Most of the people who donated are in the basic demographic Dorkin cites in his post: late 30s/early 40s comic collectors. Big Apple Con's organizer, Michael Carbonaro, used to attend every New York City Chapter meeting of Friends of Lulu.

"It wasn't just one endless freak parade by any means, but the monsters did tend to obscure the fauns and woodlings. Whatever the fuck that means. A backhanded way of saying thanks to the non-nutjobs who stopped by to say hi, we certainly appreciated the breath of fresh air and humanity and the brief staving off of thoughts of suicide or career change."

I want to expand the audience for comic books to younger people, and I believe that not doing so will hurt this industry. I believe that comic companies that get too hung-up on nostalgia are sacrificing long-term viability for short term profit. But there is no call to dehumanize a whole (really frickin' large) segment of the comic buying populace in the process.

It's this elitist attitude that will be as much responsible for "killing" comics as the targets of their criticism. I have no fucking patience for it. It's elitist, it's socio-economic-cultural snobbery.

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About Valerie D'Orazio:

Valerie D’Orazio is a comic book writer, editor and blogger who has worked for Marvel, DC, IDW, MTV, Valiant, Moonstone and Bluewater. Her comics include “Beyond: Edward Snowden,” “PunisherMAX: Butterfly,” and “X-Men Origins: Emma Frost.”

She’s been interviewed by Newsweek, CNN, MSNBC, Reuters, Bloomberg, The Washington Post, CNET, USA Today, The New York Post, CTV, The New York Daily News, Juxtapoz, Penthouse, Current TV, Mother Jones and The Ditmas Park Blog.